Check out these videos of dogs welcoming back their owners that had been on deployment. They are absolutely amazing; if you are a dog person, they are bound to make you a little teary-eyed:

You can view more videos of dogs welcoming back their “daddy” soldiers here. It’s always amazed me how dogs really do remember their owners. I remember that as a kid, my Dad would come to work to the United States for an entire year so he could send money back to Mexico so my family could survive and have a better life. My Dad would come back to Mexico every December, and our dog would remember him and would just go absolutely crazy with happiness, very similar to how the dogs reacted on these videos above. Watching these videos brought back memories to me and so I can definitely attest to the fact that dogs do remember their owners and do miss them just as much as human beings miss their loved ones.

Today is Veterans Day, so please remember our troops by either donating to Iraq and Afghanistan Veterans of America or checking out the USO or VoteVets to find out what you can to do to promote issues and campaigns that benefit veterans. For Latinos, Veterans Day has become very much a personal experience, being that they now make up a very large percentage of the U.S. Army and Marine Corps (in addition, their numbers are also growing in the Navy and the Air Force). The Latino presence in the military is nothing new, and yet the corporate in-English media continues to virtually ignore it. Thanks to in-Spanish language outlets, Latinos are getting some recognition, though. Vme is showing this week a great series of programs that highlights the presence of Latinos in the U.S. military; to view the segments online, click here. I’d only wished more pieces like these were featured in English on other more prominent networks. But hey, maybe things will eventually turn around. CNN just got rid of its hate monger Lou Dobbs, so maybe it’s a sign that things are starting to change and will get better.

Refugio’s favorite quote from the Bible:

“When an alien resides with you in your land, you shall not oppress the alien. The alien who resides with you shall be to you as the citizen among you; you shall love the alien as yourself, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt: I am the Lord your God.”
-Leviticus 19.33-25

How you can help this project:

*Start using the term "ECONOMIC REFUGEE" instead of others such as "illegal alien", "illegal immigrant", "undocumented worker", "undocumented immigrant", etc.

*Stay informed! Read the news & opinion pieces published on this site.

*Take action! When the occasional action alert is posted on this site, please take action (examples: e-mailing congress, writing the local newspaper, calling your newstation, taking signs to a march or townhall meeting, etc.) … every bit counts!

*Send me or comment me with alerts about what is going in your community regarding immigration and other issues directly affecting the Latino community.

*Become part of the Project Economic Refugee team! If you would like to support PER with your talent, services, or ideas, please send me a message at economicrefugee@hotmail.com to ask for more details. I want this to be a collaborative work for our community and I could certainly use your help as a co-organizer! Yes, I’m talking to YOU.

TransCanda gas pipeline construction project in Sierra Tarahumara near Divisadero and rim of Barrancas del Cobre/ Photo Tom Barry TransCanada is blading a 50-ft. swath across the Sierra Tarahumara – one of the most rugged, inaccessible regions of Mexico. The energy transfer and story corporation is clearing a path of natural destruction to lay a 30-inch gas […]

(The following is an excerpt from the introduction o forthcoming TransBorder Policy Report.) The national electricity system in Mexico is undergoing a radical overhaul. Proponents assert that the reform will ensure a more fiscally and environmentally sustainable system. The market-oriented reform enjoys widespread support because of the embarrassing dysfunct […]

Governor Padrés at pumping station for Independencia aqueduct on Novillo Dam / Government of Sonora “The water conflict in Sonora will not be the last of these conflicts over water that we will see in Mexico. But it certainly is a new warning of what is coming.” - Ivan Restrepo, La Jornada Five years ago a plan for a new water megaproject -- aqueduct transfe […]

Wendy Davis answered the call–she is running to be our next Governor of Texas. And now, she needs you to answer the call to chip in. Much like every vote will matter, so will every dollar. And every dollar doesn’t only help Wendy Davis in her run, but the energy she creates will be passed […]

Orale gente, Jehuniko has hit me up with his new single You Made A Man Out Of Me which will appear on his upcoming mixtape “Spiritual Warrior 4” that is co-hosted by Mun2 television & Los Angeles radio host, JDubs. The single is being released in conjunction with the Brown Berets as well as Los […]

As 2013 begins, some of us have already some kind of New Year’s resolution: lose that extra weight, get a better job, or do more exercise. In reality, these type resolutions does nothing more but entrap us further into a narcissistic and self-obsessed world, and I just find it unacceptable. This New Year’s I want […]

Let me try to get this straight: from the moment the Soviet Union imploded in 1991 until recently just about every politician and mainstream pundit in America assured us that we were the planet's indispensable nation, the only truly exceptional one on this small orb of ours. We were the sole superpower, Earth's hyperpower, its designated global she […]

While Trump's "both sides" rhetoric has been widely condemned, some liberals and centrists have also lent cover to violent white supremacists by taking aim at the tactics of antifa and Black Lives Matter activists who held their ground in the face of fascism.(Photo: Vadimguzhva / Stock / Getty Images Plus) "The thing about us fascists is, […]

As President Trump faces growing outrage over his response to the deadly white supremacist rally in Charlottesville, Virginia, we bring you an exclusive: an interview with the great-great-grandsons of Confederate General Stonewall Jackson. At least 1,500 symbols of the Confederacy can be found in public spaces across the country. But now a number of the monu […]

Garcetti getting the better of Gold Today’s guest blogger is Matthew King, Heal the Bay’s director of communications. Parting can be such sweet sorrow, the Bard once aptly noted. But speakers at a recent farewell roast of Mark Gold seemed to relish dishing out more sorrow than sweetness to Heal the Bay’s just departed president. […]

A final installment of Mark’s memories of Heal the Bay, with the “Baywatch” babes Pop culture HtB’s involvement in popular culture has always been memorable. From “Baywatch” to KTLA’s Coastal Cleanup Day specials, we ended up in the more popular media in a lot of ways. Who could forget “The Solution,” a benefit CD with […]

Beach Report Card Most of the best BRC stories aren’t mine, but I have a few. I remember sitting down with my first staff hire, Roger Gorke – now with the EPA office of water in D.C. — to create the first report card. It was an annual study and only included Santa Monica Bay beaches. […]